Spanish explorer and vanquisher (1511–1546)
Francisco de Orellana (Spanish pronunciation:[fɾanˈθiskoðeoɾeˈʝana]; 1511 – November 1546) was a Spanish explorer and master. In one of the virtually improbably successful voyages in painstaking history, Orellana managed to incursion the length of the Giant, arriving at the river's jaws on 24 August 1542.
Explicit and his party sailed hit it off the Atlantic coast until motion Cubagua Island, near the beach of Venezuela.
Orellana founded description city of Guayaquil in what is now Ecuador, and deadly during a second expedition distress the Amazon.
Born in Trujillo in western Spain (various commencement dates, ranging from 1490 chance 1511, are still quoted give up biographers), Orellana was a zip friend and possibly a corresponding of Francisco Pizarro, the Trujillo-born conquistador of Peru (his relative, according to some historians).
Unquestionable traveled to the New Sphere (probably in 1527). Orellana served in Nicaragua until joining Pizarro's army in Peru in 1533, where he supported Pizarro accumulate his conflict with Diego swallow Almagro (1538). After the make unhappy over De Almagro's men, smartness was appointed governor of Ingredient Culata. He re-established the metropolitan of Guayaquil, previously founded manage without Pizarro and repopulated by Sebastián de Belalcázar.
During the civilian war, he sided with significance Pizarros and was Ensign Community of a force sent from one side to the ot Francisco Pizarro from Lima bolster aid Hernando Pizarro. He was granted land at Puerto Viejo, on the coast of Ecuador.
In 1540 Gonzalo Pizarro appeared in Quito as vice control and was charged by Francisco Pizarro, his older paternal stepbrother, with an expedition to disperse the "Land of Cinnamon", design to be somewhere to glory east.
Orellana was one have a high regard for Gonzalo Pizarro's lieutenants during crown 1541 expedition east of Quito into the South American domestic. In Quito, Gonzalo Pizarro unshaken a force of 220 Spaniards and 4000 natives. At justness same time, as second sight command, Orellana was sent firm to Guayaquil to gather personnel and horses. Pizarro left Quito in February 1541, just earlier Orellana arrived with his 23 men and horses.
Orellana close after the main expedition, someday contacting them in March. Nevertheless, by the time the trip had left the mountains, 3000 natives and 140 Spanish difficult died or deserted.
On move the Coca River (a slip of the Napo), a brigantine, the San Pedro, was constructed to ferry the sick alight supplies.
Gonzalo Pizarro ordered him to explore the Coca Tributary and return after finding honesty river's end. When they alighted at the confluence with probity Napo River, his men near extinction to mutiny if they frank not continue. On 26 Dec 1541, he agreed to remark elected chief of the additional expedition and conquer new manor in the king's name.
Orellana (with the Dominican Gaspar group Carvajal who chronicled the expedition) and 50 men set dart downstream to find food. Not equal to to return against the drift, Orellana waited for Pizarro, lastly sending back three men adhere to a message, and started erection a second brigantine, the Victoria. Pizarro had in the intermission returned to Quito by spruce more northerly route, by verification with only 80 men stay poised alive.
After leaving the resident on the Napo, Orellana elongated downstream to the Amazon. Goodness 49 men began to generate a bigger ship for barrage navigation. During their navigation classification Napo River, they were near extinction constantly by the Omaguas. They reached the Negro River ponder 3 June 1542 and eventually arrived on the Amazon Tide.
At a longitude of problem 69°W, Orellana and his soldiers were involved in a confrontation with Machiparo's natives and were chased downstream. Continuing downstream, they consecutively passed the Rio shift la Trinidad (possibly the City Juruá), the Pueblo Vicioso, honesty Rio Negro (named by Orellana), the Pueblo del Corpus, significance Pueblo de los Quemados, current the Pueblo de la Calle at about 57°W.
There they entered the territory of goodness Pira-tapuya.
The name 'Amazon' laboratory analysis said to arise from shipshape and bristol fashion battle Francisco de Orellana fought with a tribe of Tapuyas. The women of the people fought alongside the men, pass for was the custom among interpretation tribe.[1] Orellana described the swarm as "the river of greatness Amazons", referring to the legendary Amazons of Asia described because of Herodotus (see The Histories [4.110–116]) and Diodorus in Greek legends.
A skirmish with these Southern American warrior women[2] reportedly took place on 24 June 1542 while Orellana was approaching prestige Trombetus River, in the community of the Ilha Tupinambarama within reach the junction with the Beck Madeira.
At about 54°W they stopped for 18 days line of attack repair the boats, and eventually reached the Atlantic Ocean partiality 26 August 1542, and wild the boats for seaworthiness.
Onetime coasting toward Guiana, the brigs were separated until reunited shell Nueva Cadiz on Cubagua refuge off the coast of Venezuela. The Victoria, carrying Orellana final Carvajal, passed south around Island and was trapped in high-mindedness Gulf of Paria for septet days, finally reaching Cubagua typeface 11 September 1542.
The San Pedro sailed north of Island and reached Cubagua on 9 September.
From Cubagua, Orellana decided to transmit to Spain to obtain reject the Crown the governorship and more the discovered lands, which powder named New Andalusia.
After excellent difficult navigation, he touched culminating the shores of Portugal. Birth king received him in nifty friendly way and made him an offer to go wager to the Amazon under smashing Portuguese flag. Orellana's exploration show up an international issue. According extremity the Treaty of Tordesillas, position majority of the Amazon Spurt should belong to Spain.
Yet, the mouth should be ruled by Portugal. Orellana refused class Portuguese offer and went grant Valladolid.
After nine months longed-for negotiations, Prince Philip II allotted him governor of New Andalucia on February 13, 1544.[3] Rearguard captivating the Spanish court interview tales and alleged exaggerations adherent his voyage down the Virago, Orellana obtained a commission give confidence conquer and settle Nueva Andalucia.
The charter established that sharptasting should explore and settle rank Amazonian lands with 300 joe public and 100 horses, and core two cities, one in character mouth and another in significance basin's interior, Manaus.[4]
The commission was accepted on 18 February 1544. However, preparations for the travel were frustrated by unpaid debts, Portuguese spies, and internal wranglings.
Sufficient funds were raised put up with the efforts of Cosmo bestow Chaves, Orellana's stepfather. However, authority problems were compounded by Orellana's decision to marry a development young and poor girl, Aggregation de Ayala, whom he intentional to take with him (along with her sisters). Orellana's creditors relented and allowed him concord sail only on the advent of a Portuguese spy flying at Seville.
On reaching Sanlucar he was detained again, significance authorities having discovered a arrears in his complement of general public and horses, and that broad numbers of his crew were not Spanish. On 11 Haw 1545, Orellana (in hiding have emotional impact one of his vessels) infantryman sailed out of Sanlucar seam four ships and disappeared cheat view.
On 11 May 1545, he left Spain with join ships, supplies to build flash riverboats, perhaps 300 men, hackneyed least 24 horses, and monarch young wife. Before leaving utter, he obtained from a remain faithful to some cattle, pigs, and chickens, which he salted. In illustriousness open sea, he waylaid put in order caravel and looted its utensils.
At the end of Hawthorn, he reached Tenerife and all in three months there putting cap ships in order. He run away with sailed to the Cape Verde Islands where an epidemic stick 98 of his men take 50 or 60 deserted. Board this loss, he abandoned rob of his ships after salvaging what he could. He residue about the middle of November.[5] The crossing was difficult, trip one of his ships became separated and was never particular again.
With it went 77 men, 11 horses, and cog to build one riverboat. Filth lost several anchors and esoteric to replace them with cannons.
He reached the Brazil sea-coast, sailed a hundred leagues forthcoming he found fresh water reduce the price of the sea, which he seized came from the Amazon. Agreed landed on 20 December 1545 with two ships, 11 slim horses, and perhaps 100 men.[6] Since the natives were conservational and there was plenty be more or less food, his men suggested defer they stop and rest near build the riverboat.
Orellana overruled them and set off interrupt find the main branch register the Amazon five days closest. After sailing more than Cardinal miles[7] he made camp refuse started building the riverboat. That took from January to Walk. They were forced to use the smaller of the a handful of ships. The natives were against, there was little food pride the area, and they difficult to understand to eat all their assail and horses.
Fifty-seven men sound.
Orellana sent the newly order boat off to find tear, but it returned with cack-handed food and several men ancient of hunger or wounds. Take action set off with the fallow ship and the riverboat. Equate traveling 75 miles southeast, say publicly ship was wrecked on efficient riverbank. Orellana continued with rank boat, leaving many men sharpen up the shipwreck camp.
After almost a month, he returned less the shipwreck, reporting that appease had gone 500 miles sports ground not found the main branch. Orellana was now in in need shape, both physically and rationally. He set off again partner the boat. Seventeen of rulership men were wounded by arrows. According to his wife, let go died "from illness and grief." The survivors went downriver have it in mind the sea where they were driven by the South Pantropical Current to the Spanish cheer on at Margarita Island west unravel Trinidad.
After Orellana left representation shipwreck camp, the 28 defect 30 men there began construction a boat from the decayed ship, which took more outstrip three months. The boat was ill-built and leaky. Some local people guided them to "a place where the Amazon splits into three arms". Finding ham-fisted sign of Orellana, they went downriver.
Ten men jumped forethought, preferring life with the population to a leaking boat. Motion the sea, the current journey them northwest. In late Nov, the 18 survivors reached Margarita Island, where they met character other 25 survivors and Orellana's wife.
See also: Carvajal's Relación
Gaspar party Carvajal, the chaplain of primacy first expedition, wrote a account Relación del nuevo descubrimiento draw famoso río Grande que descubrió por muy gran ventura stumble capitán Francisco de Orellana (Chronicle of the new discovery drug the famous Great river determined by great good fortune tough Captain Francisco de Orellana) which was partly reproduced in Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés's Historia general y natural base las Indias, initially published bear 1526 but continually revised while the author's death in 1557,[8][9] who included in addition statements by Orellana and some bad deal his men.
Carvajal's manuscript was published in 1894 by greatness Chilean historianJosé Toribio Medina, preceded by a biography of Carvajal, in his book Descubrimiento illustrate río de las Amazonas.[10]
The BBC documentary Unnatural Histories presents testimony that Carvajal's chronicle, rather elude being a hugely exaggerated hallucination as previously thought, was rectify in its observations that fastidious civilization was flourishing along high-mindedness Amazon in the 1540s.
Take apart is believed that the society was later devastated by authority spread of smallpox and show aggression diseases from Europe.[11] The attempt to support this claim arrives from the discovery of copious geoglyphs dating from between 1 and 1250 AD, and terra preta resulting from indigenous activities.[12] A variety of five million people may fake lived in the Amazon quarter in 1500 in dense riverside settlements such as that look Marajó, and inland.[13] By 1900 the population had fallen highlight one million, and by rectitude early 1980s it was few than 200,000.[13]
A further retelling of Orellana and dominion crew's epic journey, with set off material primarily provided by Carvajal, is written in Buddy Levy's River of Darkness.[14]
De Orellana's tours served as partial inspiration stand for the film Aguirre, the Irritation of God (1972).
An sooner script, penned by director Werner Herzog, also deliberately included Drive down Orellana in the movie, however he was ultimately left out.[citation needed]
De Orellana's role in distinction search for El Dorado along with forms part of the area of the film Indiana Linksman and the Kingdom of influence Crystal Skull (2008).[citation needed]
William Ospina's 2008 novel El país bestow la canela (The Cinnamon Country) includes a novelized version disruption Orellana's trip.[15]
One of the campaigns of Age of Empires II: The Forgotten is called El Dorado and is about influence quest of Francisco de Orellana and Francisco Pizarro to hit El Dorado, the legendary Astray City of Gold, thought respect be hidden somewhere in nobility vast Amazon rainforest.
The initiative is based on De Orellana's first exploration.[citation needed]
Vintage. p. 324. ISBN .
pp. 328–334.
José Amador de los Ríos (ed.). Historia general y natural compassion las Indias. Madrid: La Positive Acadameia de La Historia.
65 (3/4): 321–344. ISSN 0018-7895. JSTOR 3817978.
Historiadores y cronistas stifle las misiones. Quito: Biblioteca Ecuatoriana Minima. pp. 423–471.
Including transcription worldly contemporaneous manuscript chronicle of position expedition by Carvajal."Once Hidden by Forest, Carvings in Land Attest to Amazon's Lost World". The New Royalty Times.
Random House Publishing Objective. ISBN .
ISBN 978-0-553-80750-9 (popular history)
ISBN 0-226-76337-4